General Search Engine Marketing Issues Forum

When I'm searching for something to buy, it seems I rarely wind up buying from the company in the #1 slot. I've been known to search until I run out of results, but my money usually winds up going to someone in the #3 to #20 ranking.

Not that I wouldn't love to be #1 for my chosen keyword phrases, but is it really the best position to be in? I'm thinking #4 or #5 might be even better.

I don't think number one is all that great. In terms of brand development, people seeing your company name as number does a lot; but, many people are compulsive clickers and only click the first site out of curiosity, not out of real want.

But maybe one of the curious clickers will turn into a purchaser once in a while. I can see that if it's PPC or something similar then top spot generates unwanted clicks, but for 'free' visitors through seo number one is the place to be if you ask me ;)

I also rarely like the first result for searches, but as a rule I probably like #11 less 8-)

If your price is lower or you offer free shipping and it's noticeable then being in the #1 spot is advantageous. If your price is the same or you don't offer a significant buyer advantage then the #2 or #3 spot seems to convert better.

Thanks for the comments and link to the other discussion. Our prices are much lower for almost all items, so I was thinking it would be effective for customers to check out the first couple results and then click and see our prices. :)